Crystal Palace boss Roy Hodgson admits he will have a selection headache when Christian Benteke does return, after the performances of Wilfried Zaha and Andros Townsend against AFC Bournemouth.

Playing in more advanced roles, the Palace duo caused plenty of problems for the Bournemouth defence, with Zaha on target in the 2-2 draw and Townsend providing support and an attacking threat in the absence of Benteke, who missed out with a groin injury.

And Hodgson was full of praise for the Palace pair, adding that they helped contribute to a good performance in an attacking sense, with the Eagles having 13 shots at goal, including six on target.

"That's the best we've played going forward for a long time," he said.

"[It is] certainly the most chances we've created for a long time, so why would I say we missed [Christian] Benteke and his presence, because the two players up front caused the Bournemouth defence all sorts of problems.

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Christian Benteke

"And what's more we created several very good goalscoring chances, not least four one-on-ones with the goalkeeper.

As a result, Hodgson will now have a choice to make when Benteke returns from his injury, with the striker struggling for form in front of goal after netting just twice this season for the Eagles in the Premier League.

Christian Benteke has scored just two goals for Crystal Palace so far this season in the Premier League. Photo by Catherine Ivill/Getty Images

However, the Palace boss says he will not be rushing into any decisions over his team selection for the derby clash with Brighton at Selhurst Park on Saturday, given the Eagles' recent problems with injuries.

"We'll see. Things happen in this club: who knows what's going to happen next week." he said.

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"Last week, after the Liverpool game I had no idea [Christian] Benteke was going to get injured and not be able to play; I still believed [Alexander] Sorloth was going to recover in time to play and he didn't do that either. Who knows what team we'll have out?